Tigers' week in the sun starts with test vs. VCU

Jason Smith

12:00 AM, Nov 21, 2012

11:11 AM, Nov 21, 2012

Gerry Broome /Associated Press
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and his fifth-ranked Blue Devils could be waiting in the Battle 4 Atlantis' second round for No. 19 Memphis, but only if the Tigers get past VCU Thursday.

PARADISE ISLAND, BAHAMAS — Twenty-three NBA scouts.

Four teams currently ranked in The Associated Press top 25.

Five teams that made last year's NCAA Tournament.

And a cool $550,000 in total prize money.

If there was ever a week in the regular season the University of Memphis could put the rest of the country on notice, this would be it.

"It's a great tournament. A lot of good teams," said coach Josh Pastner, whose Tigers are one of eight teams participating in this week's second annual Battle 4 Atlantis.

No. 19 Memphis (2-0), which arrived in the Bahamas on Tuesday, opens quarterfinal play Thursday against VCU (2-1) at 6 p.m.

The winner there will go on to face either No. 5-ranked Duke or Minnesota in the semifinals. Meanwhile, No. 2 Louisville, which Memphis hosts at FedExForum on

Dec. 15, and No. 13 Missouri lurk on the other side of the bracket.

In other words, the Tigers could potentially earn their first win over a top-25 opponent under Pastner this week and, with a run to Saturday's final, could put themselves in early contention for a top seed in the NCAA tournament.

But before Memphis can even think about all that, it will have to get by a VCU squad that's made the NCAA tournament four times since 2007, including a Final Four under coach Shaka Smart in 2011.

"Shaka is a friend," Pastner said. "I'm not looking at this as a tournament. I'm looking at this as Thursday is our next game versus VCU. They're well coached, like I said. They've got good players. They run good stuff. They press. They play a fun style of basketball.

"But we're not looking at it (like), 'Hey, we gotta win the tournament.' We need to go in and absolutely do our best on Thursday and try to have one more point when that buzzer sounds Thursday night. That's our whole goal."

Pastner and Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins, who's in his fifth season as a head coach, are the novices here in terms of experience, with neither having won an NCAA tournament game.

Each of the other six head coaches has done that, and three of them — Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, Louisville's Rick Pitino and Minnesota's Tubby Smith — have combined to win six national championships.

"Some great coaches in that field," Pastner said. "You're talking guys like Shaka Smart, whose name is mentioned for every job that's open because of his success. Coach K is maybe the greatest in the history of college basketball. You've got Tubby Smith, who's a future Hall of Famer.

"Then you look on the other side of the bracket and you've got guys like (Missouri coach) Frank Haith and the year that he had last year. Johnny Dawkins and what he's building at Stanford. Ben Jacobson at Northern Iowa, who's won a lot of games and a couple of tournament games. And coach Pitino, obviously, who's going to be in the Hall of Fame."